David Byrne & Will Oldham’s ‘This Must Be the Place’ Soundtrack

November 16, 2011

Back in January, we learned that Will Oldham and Talking Heads icon David Byrne have teamed up to compose music for an unusual forthcoming film starring Sean Penn as a Nazi-hunting, Robert Smith-esque aging rock star. Now tracklist details and a few previews of the OST have arrived. Taking its title from the 1983 Talking Heads classic, This Must Be the Place features five new songs with lyrics by Oldham, music by Byrne, and lead vocals provided by Irish singer-songwriter Michael Brunnock, who also covers Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s “Lay & Love” for the film.

The 17-track set is rounded out with a few soundtrack staples (Iggy Pop’s “The Passenger,” a previously released Jónsi song, etc.), a live version of Byrne performing the titular song, and the tune Penn can be seen lip-syncing in the trailer, “Every Single Moment In My Life Is a Weary Wait.” While I’m still not sure if the film will be any good, the songs that have popped up on YouTube are intriguing — particularly Brunnock’s take on “Lay & Love.” You can check out some clips with the tracklist below: